Delicate
by crazyplotqueen
Summary: Attending college and having a side job as a hero isn't easy for Roy Harper, and hiding it from his new roommate, Jade Nguyen, is even harder. What he doesn't know, is that Jade is also in the superhero game. But as his arch-nemesis, Cheshire. {Alternate Universe}
1. Fathomless

**.**

 **Delicate**

 **.x.X.x.**

 _~CrazyPlotQueen~_

 **Gotham Alleyways**

 **September 21st**

 **10:15 PM**

The click of expensive boots down the dark alleyway alerted Hook of Cheshire's arrival first. The assassin watched as a young woman slinked out of the darkness, movements fluid and confident. The moonlight overhead twisted the shadows on her mask to make it ghoulish and disturbing, and Hook steeled himself. He was probably three times the size of her, there no reason for him to feel nervous around her. Still, there was something all too off-putting about that stretched smile.

"Is it done?" Hook asked gruffly, straightening up from where he leaned on the alley wall.

"Did you ever doubt me?" Cheshire purred silkily, dangling a bloodstained wallet in front of his face.

The man took the wallet from her, flipping through it. He caught a glimpse of Cheshire's target for the first time. Harry Davis, a CEO of a company the League was finished with. They had called Cheshire in to finish the deal up, and tie some loose ends.

"I always doubt you. Do you have pictures of the body?" Hook asked. The woman held up a few polaroids between her gloved fingers, and he quickly plucked them from her grasp. "Good."

"My payment?" She put out a hand expectantly. Hook sighed, then turned away to pull a briefcase out from behind a dumpster, and handed it to her.

Cheshire unlatched the case, and gazed upon a hundred-thousand dollars. Beautiful, she thought as she let out a silent but content sigh.

"Happy?"

Cheshire eyed him for a second and then flipped underneath the first layer of bills, making sure they hadn't swindled her. Suspicions soothed, she grinned underneath the mask.

"Very." She saluted Hook, then turned around and melted back into the darkness, the silence surrounding him once more.

Hook squinted into the darkness, trying to figure out whether she was really gone. Cheshire was never one for pleasantries, but he had expected her to hang around longer. Still, he knew that she had a busy life outside of assassin work, and she was in high demand with the League of Shadows, so he understood.

With that thought, the assassin retreated back down the alleyway to continue his work.

 **Star City, Warehouses**

 **September 21st**

 **11:00 PM**

As Red Arrow spied down on the inside of the warehouse from the rafters, he found himself growing more and more pleased with what he was finding. The vigilante had gone out in Star City for a routine sweep of the streets, but so far, it wasn't looking so routine. Red Arrow rarely found an illegal firearms operation, run by an escaped Belle Reve prisoner.

"Tonight's about to get interesting…" The masked teen breathed to himself, a slow smile stretching across his face.

Red Arrow was getting excited at the prospect of bagging a dangerous arms dealer tonight, as that could really set him up in the hero world. This could be his breakthrough. With this arrest, he could make a name for himself. A name without Green Arrow.

The teen let out a inaudible growl as his thoughts trailed to his previous mentor. He had recently parted ways with the superhero after getting pissed at he wasn't joining the League. Red Arrow huffed in irritation, nocked an arrow, and let it slice through the air towards the nearest weapons handler.

Thick, black smoke poured out of one of the containers and wafted through the air, eliciting coughs from the men on the ground.

Red Arrow made his move. Dropping from the rafters of the warhouse, he hit the ground and swept his leg out, knocking several men off their feet. He grabbed a machine gun off the ground, and rammed it into the advancing soldier's head, knocking him back into another person.

But as he had his back turned, a soldier tackled him to the floor, slamming punch after punch into Red Arrow's jaw. Cheap shot, the hero scoffed silently to himself. He grabbed the soldier by the upper arms, flipped him onto his back, and slammed his head against the man's, swiftly knocking him unconscious.

As the vigilante blew through the remaining soldiers in the room, he noticed his smoke screen was quickly disappearing due to the ventilation in the building, meaning he'd have to act fast. Red Arrow judo-flipped his last opponent, his eyes sweeping around the warehouse, and his gaze stopped on his main target.

Brick.

The colossal man was currently yelling at his remaining workers to hurry up loading the rest of his wares into a transport vehicle. Roy took a brief moment to commit the license plate of the truck to memory. He'd have to go after it when he was done with Brick and the authorities arrived.

"You again!" The man roared, his face twisted into a furious sneer. But once Brick got a look at Red Arrow, his expression melted into one of surprise and confusion. "Ain't you Green Arrow's sidekick? Doesn't he have the decency to come after me himself? He sent you, the whiny brat!"

"Whoa. First off, I am not a whiny brat. I know plenty of heroes who complain more than me. Secondly, who are you calling sidekick? Didn't you hear about Green Arrow and I? We ended that partnership weeks ago," The hero shouted, frustration leaking into his voice. He momentarily forgot about his job, until Brick threw a metal barrel at his head.

Red Arrow hit the floor, rolling off to the side of it, and behind a wooden crate. Another barrel hit the side of the crate, splintering the flimsy wood a little, but it also nicked the hero in the wrist when he held it up to protect from the splintering wood. He let out a breathy curse as it connected. He'd have to check out the injury later.

Turning to the side, Red Arrow felt his stomach drop when he noticed someone was sitting next to him. Robin.

"What are you doing here?" He demanded angrily. Was the League seriously sending a babysitter after him?

Robin didn't seem concerned in the slightest. "Checking up on you. You looked like you could use some help." He gestured to Brick, who tossed another barrel at the pair.

"Bull. You aren't checking up on me," Red Arrow scoffed to him. Rolling out from behind the crate, he loaded an explosive arrow, firing it at his enemy. It exploded on contact, but was relatively harmless for the criminal. Red Arrow cursed furiously; Brick's powers had slipped his mind for a moment.

"Ha! You forgot the invulnerability!" Brick taunted, cracking his knuckles, then charging towards the duo.

"Come on, Arrow. Show me you don't need to be checked up on then," Robin arched a brow pointedly.

The vigilante let out a frustrated growl at his friend, then quickly pulled an arrow out of his quiver, nocking and aiming. Releasing the string, it sailed through the air, hitting at Brick's feet. A black goo spiraled out of the tip, a high-density polyurethane foam made by Red Arrow, effectually encasing him in foam and restraining him.

The teen stood up, stretching his arms a bit, and tuned out Brick's curses with a smug smile. According to him, he nailed this weapons bust.

"Nice shot," Robin said mildly, nodding his head. "Now, mind if we talk?"

"I'd rather not. I have a busy night," He scoffed, wincing as he flexed his hand. A sharp stabbing pain shot through the nerves, and he frowned in concern. He'd probably have to take some time to look at it, and make sure it wasn't sprained or anything.

"Come on. For the sake of old friends?" The younger boy tried to convince him with small smile. The smile dropped when he saw Red Arrow's unamused look. "Fine. I'll get to the point. Batman's putting together a team of protégés-"

"Protege is just a nice word for sidekick." The other teen interrupted.

"That's not true," Robin shot back, giving him a glare. "Don't interrupt. Batman's making a team and we want you to join in. Aqualad, Kid Flash, and I are already on it! And we got a new guy too! Plus, Green Arrow said he's willing to work with you again…"

"No. I told you all once, I'm not going back to them. I'm a hero." Red Arrow insisted flatly, gesturing to the unconscious soldiers in the warehouse.

"It can be like old times!"

"It can never be like old times," Red Arrow shook his head, turning away from his old friend and beginning to walk away.

There was an uncomfortable silence that followed, only the whistling of the wind on the outside of the building to ease the tension between the pair. "I...understand. Good luck out there, Roy."

When Red Arrow glanced back at the place where Robin last stood, the teen was gone, leaving only the vigilante to deal with the aftermath of his success.

 **Star City, Skyline Diner**

 **September 22nd**

 **12:00 A.M.**

As Roy Harper's tennis shoes crunched against the gravel parking lot, he couldn't help but feel a sense of nostalgia while he approached the diner he and his friends often went to. Skyline Diner was on the outskirts of Star City, mounted on a hill overlooking the city. Patrons often remarked that this diner was the best place to watch the sun rise in all of the City.

Roy entered the tiny diner, happy to see it was mostly empty at this late hour. The diner stayed open pretty late at night for truck drivers, but tonight was pretty quiet.

"Hey, Roy!" A light and airy voice called from behind the counter of the diner. A petite young woman, her dark brown braided hair done up into a neat bun, waved to him on her tiptoes. Willow Jepson.

The young woman was an old flame of Roy's, but now just a friend. The pair had hit it off immediately on his first visit to Skyline diner last summer after he discovered Willow's grandfather opened the place fifty years. He had discovered she was a charming, intelligent, perfectionist, who was also his type of girl. Unfortunately, their relationship never went past just being flames due to Roy's secret job as Red Arrow.

"Hey there, Willow." The teen grinned at the dark skinned girl, taking a seat at the red counter.

"Your usual?"

"You know it," Roy grinned at the cup of coffee she slid across the counter. "I'm going to need a few more of those by the time I'm done here. I have an Economics test to study for."

"Economics? You changed your major again?" Willow wrinkled her nose, slicing up some of the Jepson's famous lemon meringue pie.

"No, I'm just thinking about it-"

"A career? In economics? Won't that be boring?" Willow rolled her honey colored eyes, sliding the large slice of pie across the counter to him.

"Maybe, maybe not. I'm still trying it out. I think staring at clothes all day is boring," Roy shot back pointedly.

"Maybe for you. I think it's exciting," The girl breathed, leaning across the counter towards him. It was well known to all the regular customers that Willow Jepson had a love and passion for all things fashion, since she was a little girl. It was all she ever talked about. Occasionally, hearing her rant about contrasting clothing pieces and monotone outfits was a bit boring, but Willow was so enthusiastic it was hard not to listen to her.

"You're certainly good at it. And Star University thinks so too. Full ride scholarship. I'm jealous," Roy scoffed playfully.

Willow pursed her lips teasingly to reply, but paused as a loud voice called for her from the back.

"Sorry. Dad needs me for something, and technically, I'm still at work," She rolled her eyes, offered her customer a smile, and disappeared into the back of the diner.

After a moment of silence, with just the radio playing behind the counter, Roy let out a small sigh. It really was lonely coming here alone, but the teen wasn't here to socialize with people. He was here to study, to crack down on his books. Reaching over to his bookbag on the floor, then teen slowly hefted a thick economics book up onto the counter, and flipped through the worn pages until he found the chapter he was reading.

"Studying? In a diner? My, my, Roy Harper. You're more of a student than I thought," A voice teased from beside him.

Roy's head shot up and his eyes zeroed in on a girl beside him, holding a coffee mug in hand. Long, velvety raven hair framed her porcelain face, and almond shaped eyes, the color of Roy's coffee, stared back at him. Jade Nguyen, a fellow student at Star University. The pair had talked on several occasions since they shared a Chemistry class together, but they had never really gotten close, they were simply friends.

She looked tired, judging from the deep circles under her eyes. The teen was rather surprised that she had managed to sneak up on him, of all people, and be sure to make sure he didn't notice. Maybe he was that tired.

"I have a test tomorrow. Last minute studying," He explained with a shrug. "Library is closed, so I can't really study there."

"I'd think it would be closed at twelve in the morning." Jade leaned her head on her hand, eyes sparking playfully.

"I don't really like to study at home either. Busy diners keep me awake." Roy added, tapping the page of the thick book. Some days, he agreed with Willow. Economics was boring, especially the reading that was assigned.

"I can understand that. Plus, the pie and coffee. Does your girlfriend give you that for free?" She commented offhandedly.

"I like coming here especially for the pie and coffee." He nodded, then flushed. "Yeah, I get it for free, but not because she's my girlfriend. Willow's just a friend."

"You seem awfully close," Jade muttered pointedly, taking a sip of her coffee.

"How long were you watching me for?" Roy shot back in surprise.

"Doesn't really matter how long. Only takes a few seconds for me to jump to conclusions."

Roy scoffed and shook his head, "You're impossible, Jade."

"I'm impossible? Oh, no. That's impossible. How can you read that stuff?" She gestured to the economics book. "Does it physically hurt to read about inflation in the nineteenth century?"

"No." He rolled his eyes, then paused for a moment, cracking a slight smile. "Alright. Maybe a little."

Jade went silent, her coffee colored eyes roaming over the boy's face. He furrowed his brows, trying to discern what she was thinking about. He found it strange how a girl could go from talkative and playful to completely silent in mere seconds.

"What's on your mind?" He asked finally, meeting those unreadable eyes.

"Oh, nothing too much. Just wondering where you got those bruises from," Jade smiled slyly, throwing him a wink. Roy tried to keep his internal panic from slipping out behind his calm facade. She had caught the bruises beginning to form on his jaw, from the weapons bust an hour earlier. She really was something, sneaky and observative for a civilian.

Jade tipped her head back, gulping down the rest of her coffee, then let out a content sigh. "Your girlfriend makes a hell of a cup of coffee." She smirked, pulling a five dollar bill out of her back pocket. She smacked it down on the counter, and put her empty cup on top to anchor it.

"You're leaving?" He asked, almost disappointed that he'd have to go back to doing actual work.

The young woman stood up, her raven black hair spilling down her back like a waterfall. "You know it. I have class tomorrow too, you know. I suggest you read fast, you look absolutely exhausted." Jade pulled on a blue, beat up baseball cap, and strode towards the door of the diner.

"And get some ice for those bruises!" She called back to him. Opening the door, Jade disappeared into the pitch black darkness that was the night, leaving Roy Harper alone with his economics homework and thoughts.

* * *

AN: Hello there! I want to thank you for reading this far, this was just a simple idea I had where Jade and Roy eventually become roommates while hiding their secret identities from each other. I want to thank Octavia with Stars for Eyes for all her help with this, she's a doll! If you enjoyed it, review. If you didn't, please give me some feedback so I can fix it! Thanks!


	2. Sagacity

**.**

 **Sagacity**

 **.x.X.x.**

 _~CrazyPlotQueen~_

 **September 22nd**

 **01:00 AM**

As Roy Harper trudged up the rotted steps of his home, being quiet was the last thing on his mind, which was probably a bad thing. After driving for half an hour, he didn't quite care who saw him — he was too tired to get inside stealthily. He made a mental note to have these steps fixed, testing the top step and cringing as he heard a sharp creak. He had more than enough money to do so, since his parents were quite wealthy before they died.

He unlocked the door, entering and dropping his backpack onto the old wooden floor of his aunt's home, his economics book hitting the floor with a thud. Roy winced; he'd definitely just alerted his family that he was home. He didn't want to have to deal with the questions; he just wanted to sleep.

"Roy? Is that you?" his aunt's soft, melodious voice floated through the house.

He let out a short sigh, pausing in the hallway. He was just a few feet away from the stairs — he could easily sprint up and into his room. But he loved his aunt, and she didn't deserve to be ignored.

"Hey. Yeah, it's me," Roy poked his head into the kitchen where he presumed she was at. When Eliza Harper couldn't sleep, she was always having a cup of warm tea in the cozy kitchen. A warm light flooded the room, and he glanced over to see his aunt sitting at the table, a blond haired man right next to her: Oliver Queen.

"What are you doing here?" Roy asked, immediately scowling at the sight of him.

"Ignore him. We'll get to Ollie in a moment. You, Roy Harper, have a lot of nerve to be coming back at this hour. What happened to curfew?" His aunt's voice turned as hard as ice, and he winced. God, he hated making her mad. He looked up at the abnormally small red-head that was tapping her foot impatiently against the floor. She was beautiful, in a delicate sort of way; Eliza Harper had her sister's face, only a little more aged. Roy used to compare her to photos of his mother, in awe of how identical they seemed to be.

"Curfew...got pushed back a little tonight. There was this guy who was trafficking illegal weapons, and I just had to stop him for the greater good of humanity —" Roy babbled on, hoping she'd buy it. Eliza was rather new to the whole 'my-nephew-is-a-vigilante' thing, so she didn't quite understand that heroes weren't supposed to have curfews when they were saving the city. "And then Brick —"

"What happened to your wrist?!" she gasped, a hand flying to her mouth. Her baby blue eyes narrowed in distrust as they zeroed in on his swelling hand. "I'll go get you some ice. You'll be lucky if you don't get grounded tonight!" She grumbled as she stalked off to the freezer, across the room.

Roy wanted to protest. The fate of Star City could be in jeopardy if his Aunt grounded him. He wanted to say that the League may even have to intervene if she prevented him from going out to protect the streets! But in Roy's few months of living with his aunt, he learned one thing: accept what you're given, and be thankful that it's not worse.

"I heard about your little escapade with Brick. I would have been proud if you didn't make your Aunt so worried." Ollie crossed his arms, watching his former protege impassively.

"I'm betting you heard it from Robin," Roy scoffed, walking over to the kitchen cupboards. He opened the cabinets- the white paint peeling- and grabbed a glass.

Ollie shook his head. "You know, not everyone is out to get you, Roy. And besides, he really does care about you. I care about you —"

"Save it. You can lie all you want, but I'm not falling for it." Roy glared accusingly at his old mentor. "If you really cared, you would have fought to make me part of the League. Not some stupid sidekick. If you really cared, you would have trusted me enough."

Ollie's eyes grew steely. "This isn't some little club. It's the _Justice League_." His tone was anxious, and he got up from where he was leaning against the wall

"Why are you even here?" Roy chuckled dryly, gulping down some water. The rage that was bubbling up inside him was making him nauseous; the last thing he wanted to do was fight with his old mentor.

Oliver ran a hand through his hair in frustration, taking a moment to gather his thoughts, and rein in his emotions. "Roy. We may not see eye-to-eye all the time, but I really do care about you. Robin, Kaldur, Wally...They all care about you —"

"Don't try to guilt trip me into joining that sorry group of sidekicks. I'm doing fine on my own," Roy interrupted, setting his glass down onto the counter rather violently. He paused, eyes flicking down to the cup, checking to see if it cracked from the force. Satisfied, he began to leave the room.

He half expected his old mentor to try and stop him, try and spout off something else that would make him stop and reconsider, but Oliver Queen made no such move. Roy considered he was lucky, but it send a pang of hurt racing through his heart.

He quickly retreated up the stairs of his home, ignoring his urge to sprint out the front door and never come back.

 **Happy Harbor University**

 **September 22nd**

 **8:30 AM**

Watching the minute hand slowly crawl around the face of the clock, Jade Nguyen found herself already wishing her chemistry class would end. She'd only been listening to her professor lecture for half an hour, but it was half an hour too long.

Jade was always ahead of the curve when it came to chemistry, due to her work with chemicals as her alter ego, Cheshire, so the information the professor was spouting off wasn't anything new to her.

In other words, this class was boring and useless as all hell.

"Goddamnit…"

The soft expletives from the seat next to her pulled Jade out of her thoughts, and her dark brown eyes flicked to the person letting them fly. The man next to her had roguish, handsome features, with auburn hair and light blue eyes.

A smile slipped onto her lips as she recognized Roy Harper; Jade was happy she found something more entertaining than her professor.

"You okay there? You seem to be having some problems," Jade drawled, watching Roy curiously. He was jotting down a few notes, but he seemed more bruised and cut up than last night. Squinting a little, Jade saw that a bruise on his jaw was very badly covered up with concealer. Either he got into a bar fight and lost, or he was one clumsy person.

Roy quickly glanced over to her, flushing embarrassedly. "Yeah. I'm alright."

"Your hand doesn't look like it's alright. It's all swollen. Did you get in a fight last night?" she teased, arching a brow inquisitively.

"Uh, actually, yeah. With my roommate," Roy lied, saying the first thing that came to mind. It wasn't exactly a lie, he did get in a fight, just not with his roomate. He didn't even stay on campus. That fight with Brick was really messing up his day; first his hand, then Jade. Roy was still impressed with how observant she was. She picked up the bruises last night, the ones that were still forming, and now she was catching onto his other injuries.

"That's shitty," Jade commented, tapping her pencil absentmindedly against her notebook. There was a distinct silence between the two as neither one knew what to say next. "What happened? I mean, you can talk to me, if you'd like." Roy bit the corner of his lip, mulling it over. It would be pretty nice to get some advice what to do. It wasn't like he had Robin or Wally to talk to anymore. Willow might understand, but Jade was...more serious, in a sense. She seemed experienced, and he felt he could trust her.

"You don't mind?"

"Trust me." She chuckled quietly, a wicked smile spreading across her face. "I won't be learning much from this lecture. If anything, this will entertain me. And… On a more serious note, I do have experience with fighting with roommates."

Jade thought back to all the screaming matches she had with her mom and dad, who were secretly Tigress and Sportsmaster, about her illegal habits.

Roy snickered a bit, glancing back at the professor, before turning back to his friend. "I, uh...I do some things my roommate doesn't like. Well, they don't understand it," he began, glancing up warily to read her expression. She was horribly impassive, and it made him nervous.

"What sort of things?" Jade arched a brow.

"Well...I just go out with some people. A lot. And it annoys my roomate." It wasn't a complete lie, Roy tried to reason. Right? He used to go out with his friends, Robin and the others."And last night we had a fight about it."

"A physical fight?" Jade jerked her head towards his purpling wrist. Roy regretted not taking Aunt Eliza's ice pack, but he hadn't wanted to see Oliver's face again.

"Erm, yeah," he admitted, his eyes trailing down to his notebook.

She was silent for a moment, her long nails drumming against her thigh, as she was deep in thought. Slowly, she smirked. "I bet he looks worse."

He chuckled lightly, a slight blush creeping onto his cheeks. "Yeah...He kinda does." What was he doing? Lying about what happened last night? And for what, just to impress her?  
"So, are you two roommates anymore?" she asked, wondering about how badly their relationship was damaged after the fight. If it had been verbal, it still would have been bad, but because they had actually fought, it was probably much worse.

Roy shifted uncomfortably; he wasn't sure how to continue this lie. He didn't want to risk her catching him, so he might as well just tell her 'no'. And it wouldn't be a complete lie, as he was thinking about moving out of his Aunt's house just to get away from her and Oliver. "I've decided to move out, yeah. Not sure where at the moment, but I'm sure I'll figure it out."

"If you'd like, you can crash at my place for a bit," she offered suddenly, turning back to him. "I mean, sure, you haven't talked to me that much, but I understand needing a place to stay." After leaving Artemis and her father, Jade had bounced from sleeping in cars and on benches. It was a miracle that she was even given the chance to go to college. Roy was a nice guy, and if he needed a place to stay, she didn't want him to have to worry about it. Plus, he was pretty smart. And that meant he'd totally do her homework if she asked, Jade thought with a slight smile.

He quickly started to backtrack, surprised by the offer. "I don't want to be a burden and besides —"

"You wouldn't be a burden. And besides" — Jade countered, flashing him a flirtatious smile— "you can take me out to dinner to pay me back."

Roy paused and stared at her, a slightly bewildered look on his face. Was she…flirting? Jade was always cheeky and a tease. But was she legitimately flirting this time? Roy decided not to question it. "Uh, sure. I think dinner would be great." He honestly hadn't expected this. What was he supposed to do? Reject her? Jade would suspect a lie; he knew she was perceptive like that. And besides, it would be nice to get away from his aunt for a little while. He could actually focus on his school work and study with Jade; she was incredible at chemistry. And… Oliver wouldn't know where he was. That was definitely a plus.

But moving out was a big decision, one Roy couldn't make in seconds, one he actually had to think over. He could simply answer later, giving him more time to mull it over.

"I, uh, could text you?"

Jade smirked at him. "You have my number, right?"

"I think so…" Roy slipped his phone out of his hoodie pocket, opened it, and furrowed his brows at it. "Oh. I don't."

"Here." She took out a piece of paper from her notebook, scribbled down a series of numbers in bubbly, wide handwriting, then passed the scrap of paper to him. The corners of Roy's lips turned upwards when he saw that she had drawn a heart at the bottom. "Text me anytime."

When Jade flashed him wink, Roy felt his heartbeat a little louder. He didn't know if he was embarrassed or infatuated with Jade, but he knew for sure that he was intrigued by her. Her eyes held secrets and mysteries, none she was willing to give up so easily. The detective part of him longed to find the answers she hid under flirtatious behavior and confidence. She couldn't possibly be so nice. Did she want something from him? Roy felt himself already questioning his decisions.

"I just might." He chuckled softly, folding the piece of paper and shoving it into his pocket.

Jade let out a contented sigh; this was the most interesting chemistry lecture she'd had in awhile. Whether that was a good or bad thing, she didn't know.

 **AN:**

 **Hey, guys! Wow, it's been awhile! Sorry it took so long to get this chapter out; with all of my QFLC, Forum, and How Far We've Fallen responsibilities, I've been swamped! I'm going to try and get the next chapter out sooner, but no promises! {school starts in a week… help!}**

 **Anyways, I really hope you enjoyed this! If you haven't noticed, I want there to be a build up between Roy and Jade. Plenty of slow burn here. Some Canon events will tie into this story, but mostly, it's AU.**

 **Thanks to the girls on QFLC for Beta-ing.**

 **Please tell me if you liked it! Reviews make me happy!**

 **Thanks so much for reading!**

 **~Quinn**


	3. Move-In Day

**Happy Harbor Apartments**

 **September 22nd**

 **5:30 PM**

"Nguyen! Keep it down in there!"

The loud shouts from the apartment below her snapped Jade out of her thoughts, and a slow smirk spread across her thin lips. Setting the bar back on the rack, she sat up and turned up the heavy metal rock she was jamming to a bit louder.

The woman picked up her plastic water bottle off the hardwood floor and took a long gulp of water. She'd been working out for the past few hours, doing some reps of weight lifting. Jade had to have some serious muscle to pack a punch against a hero like Aqualad, Kid Flash, and Superboy. Naturally, she possessed no superhuman strength, so she had to get her muscles toned the good-old-fashioned way: weight lifting.

Jade did a few stretches and lunges, loosening up her shoulders for the pull-ups next in her workout. Until there was a sharp knock at the door, that is.

Sighing deeply, Jade stalked towards the door, wrenching it open.

"Yes?" She arched a brow at the hot-tempered middle-aged man, within a balding hairline, who seemed less than pleased with her.

"Your music is going making everyone in this building deaf," he snapped, tapping his foot impatiently. Ah, yes. This was Harold, from just across the hall. She could smell the stench of vodka that permeated his apartment all the way from here.

"It's good music," Jade answered pointedly. "Not that I expect you to know, of course." Maybe she would have been a little nicer if he hadn't hit on her six separate times this year. Maybe she would have been a little nicer if she was, well, a more delightful person in general.

"Turn it down, Jade, or I'm calling the landlord."

"Pets aren't allowed in the building, Harold," she reminded him, plucking a stray dog hair from his shirt. It was a necessary evil for proving her point.

"Oh, and just so you know, I'm buying a drum set."

Harold set his jaw, cursing softly under his breath.

"And I'm a beginner."

Jade slammed the door shut in his face, stormed to the stereo, and turned it up as high as it would go.

 **September 22nd**

 **4:00 PM**

Roy sloppily shoved clothes in his suitcase, cursing how little baggage he owned. He'd have to pick up some cardboard boxes, and maybe steal a few of Eliza's trash bags. Even more concerning, he had no clue how he would get his belongings out of the house. With this much stuff, his aunt was bound to notice.

He packed hastily, cursing the universe for not bestowing super-speed upon him as they did for Wally. In a mere thirty seconds, he could have been finished and out the door.

Roy heard the door to his aunt's home open and slam shut. His body went into fight or flight mode, shoving suitcases in the closet and piles of clothes under his bed.

"Roy? Roy honey?" Eliza called, heading up the staircase.

Should he just save himself the trouble and tell her now? No, that would kill Eliza. She would attempt to persuade him to stay. She would cite his failing out with Oliver as the root of the issue.

Just as Roy decided to grab a blanket to hide the pile of stuff on his bed, Eliza walked in.

"Are you in the mood for pizza or Thai?" Her baby blue eyes focused in on his cluttered room. "What happened here?"

"Uh, I am reorganizing my bedroom." Yes, that was good. Wasn't completely a lie, but wasn't totally the truth.

Eliza snorted. "When have you ever cleaned?"

"All the time," he argued, sliding over ever so subtly. Roy's heart wasn't in his words, though. He knew he was only delaying the inevitable. Eventually, Eliza would either figure it out or he would have to tell her. It was probably just better to tell her now and save himself a 'heart-to-heart' talk with Oliver Queen.

"Actually, I didn't want to have to tell you...But I'm moving out."

"You're what? Roy, you can't even cook yourself dinner, let alone live on your own! What brought this on? Is it Oliver—"

"No, no! Not that," Roy rubbed his forehead, leaning against the wall. "It's..." His mind jumped to the closest option he could think of. "It's this girl. We're sorta a thing."

Eliza's eyes grew as wide as saucers. "Roy Harper," she hissed. "You're moving in with a girl? That I haven't met?"

"Yet," he interjected, pointing a finger at her. "You haven't met her yet, but you are absolutely going to love her."

"Go on," his aunt arched a brow suspiciously.

"She is...witty. She's beautiful, so damn intelligent…" Roy lied through his teeth, trying to come up with a description on the fly. All he knew about Jade was that she was clever and witty. And kind, on some level, if she was letting him stay with her.

"She sounds wonderful. We're going to have dinner together, you know that? All three of us," Eliza stated flatly. It wasn't even a question at this point. Eliza wanted to evaluate this candidate for herself and approve her. Especially if her beloved nephew would be living with her.

Roy nodded vigorously, hoping to appease her.

"I don't like this, but if she makes you happy…" she wagged her finger at Roy. "You'd better call me every. Single. Day. And you'd better be respectful! I didn't raise my nephew without any manners…" Eliza grumbled, turning and storming down the hall.

Roy practically melted on the spot, sinking onto his messy bed. The hard part was over now; he was free. Free from seeing Oliver at his home ever again. And subjected to seeing Jade every day at his new one. Was the trade-off really worth it? To preserve his sanity, Roy reasoned, it was.

"And we are having pizza tonight! I will see you down here in forty minutes, young man!"

Roy almost jumped at his Aunt's loud shout, but he chuckled a little under his breath. Poor Eliza probably never saw this day coming; the day Roy left the nest. She was, predictably, upset and petty.

"Yes, Aunty!" he shouted back, then pulled his suitcases out from his closet, continuing his packing.

 **Happy Harbor Apartments**

 **September 22nd**

 **6:30 PM**

Stepping out of the shower, Jade heard the familiar buzz of her cellphone. She wrapped a towel around herself, finding a message from an unknown number waiting for her. Roy Harper.

 _I'm on my way. Should be over in twenty._

Jade smirked. Took him long enough. She'd only been waiting for him all evening. By the time they were done unpacking, they wouldn't have much of the night left for quality time.

 _Glad you didn't flake. Oh, and if you see a middle-aged man that smells like sweat, liquor, and a mid-life crisis, do not tell him you're my new roomie._

 _…Do I even want to ask?_

 _You'll understand by the end of the week. Just hurry up. I've got a Calculus exam in two days and, with your late arrival, we're on borrowed time._

 _Yes, ma'am._

Jade hurried to her bedroom to throw on a pair of jeans and a shirt from the top of her laundry pile. The color didn't matter much to her, just as long as it covered everything.

The woman exited her bedroom, surveying the work needed to be done. The dishes were stacked like jenga blocks; her laundry covered the kitchen table; dead roses from some guy in her English class sat on her coffee table. And most prominently, coffee cups littered the apartment.

There was major speed-cleaning to be done.

Jade reasoned she looked like a tornado, throwing things in garbage cans, stuffing clothes in drawers, purging the home of remnants of other men she'd slept— rather, hung out with. By the time Roy knocked on her door, the place didn't look too awful. Just enough to pass for the 'I'm-a-busy-college-student-and-not-completely-a-slob' look.

"Hey there," Jade grinned, giving him a cursory glance, up and down. "You look a lot better than you did this morning."

Roy rolled his eyes playing, "Gee, thanks. Such a lovely compliment."

"You're welcome," she gave him a playful wink. "Hurry up and get your ass inside. I wouldn't be surprised if Harold was glaring daggers at me through his peephole."

He obliged, hurrying inside his apartment and pulling the door shut behind him. Glancing around the room, he could tell the place wasn't spotless, which relieved some of his worries. Roy's room could get quite untidy when he neglected to clean for a few days, so it was nice to see Jade wasn't some neat-freak.

"I, uh, brought you something. Just as a little thank you. I can't thank you enough for your generosity—"

"Save it, Harper," she chuckled. "I wouldn't want you worrying about where to crash when I have a perfectly good apartment."

Roy gave her a soft smile, then placed a brown paper bag on her kitchen table, pulling out coffee and a box of the Jepson's lemon meringue pie.

"Coffee and sweets," Jade mused, opening the box and eyeing the pie hungrily. "You sure know how to woo a girl. Come on, I'll show you your room."

She padded down the hallway, escorting him to a room that was somewhat empty if you disregarded the weight lifting equipment that occupied it.

"Don't worry, Roy," Jade smirked, patting his forearms. "You've got muscles, and I've got...motivational skills. We can get this done, easy."

He rolled his eyes at her, wishing he'd bought more than just one coffee at Skyline Diner today. They were apparently going to be working past midnight to get everything settled. But, he wasn't going to complain to Jade. She was being somewhat kind to him, and that was more than he ever expected.

"Let's get working then because I have at least 10 trash bags full of stuff in my car," Roy sighed. He and Jade swiftly got to Harbor Apartments

* * *

 **This is a short little chapter, simply because I haven't updated this story in over a year. Oopsies. Life is busy. There will be around 10-11 chapters in this story, so I'm hoping to get more done soon.**

 **I haven't rewatched Young Justice in awhile, so some of my canon knowledge may be wrong. Oh well.**

 **Hope you guys like this chapter, and tell me what you think of their dynamic so far.**

 **Byeeee for now!**


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